Keep smiling and keep going.. :)
The last few days have been quite demanding personally as well as professionally. Couldn't get much time to practice my guitar and work pressures have increased too. It's when things get hectic as this, that the "pessimistic philosopher" side of you starts working overtime. :)
A few days back, I was just going through the newspaper and I happened to read about the heat wave that has taken Kerala by surprise, the surprising fact being that peak summer is yet to arrive. The temperature has already reached 43 degrees and people are finding it difficult to cope up with it. The farmers are fighting hard to save their crops and cope up with such extreme temperature at the same time.
The same day I happened to visit my social networking profile and saw many photographs of beautiful places in Europe and US, posted by few of my friends who have been abroad from some time now. The world's a beautiful place. And it's been my long time ambition to visit all the beautiful places around the world. Unfortunately, it has never worked out up till now.
As the day progressed, and the work pressure piled up, I felt a sense of despair growing within me. I started thinking about all the plans which I had made for my career and which I haven't been able to realize till now. I thought about all the dreams which I had cherished since a long time, and which I haven't been able to fulfill till date. I started feeling like a looser, thinking about all the opportunities which I had wasted over the years. I thought about the kind of life my friends had been able to achieve just because they never lost the kind of opportunities, which I did. I hated myself that very moment, for everything I was at that very moment.
The worst thing about such a condition is that, there is no immediate thing which you can do, to get rid of it. The day continued and ended with me cursing myself for all the worst things I could think about me.
The next morning was a pleasant surprise. I woke up to my Mom letting me know that she was happy for being able to help out our house maid in a small manner. The previous day, she gave her a small table fan which was lying unused in our house for years. This morning, the maid came back for work and she let my mother know how happy her husband and 2 small kids have been for the addition of this table fan in their small house, which could barely accommodate such luxuries. They always had problems coping up with the summer, and had never been able to sleep comfortably in this season, for many years in a row. They had even tried hard to save up money to buy a table fan, but could never afford it, considering the modest income that she and her husband earn every month. She said that the last night was the best sleep she and her family had had in years.
I woke up to a reality. Here I was, a software developer in a reputed company, with no major health problems, living with my parents, having great friends, having ample time and ample opportunities for everything I wish to do, complaining and whining about not having a chance to go to Europe and US and rating my whole life "worthless" due to this one fact.
And here before me stood a lady who toiled hard everyday of her life, just to ensure that her family didn't have to sleep without food that day. A table fan which gathered dust in my home, was a luxury and a prized possession for her.
I thought about the farmers whom I had read about in the newspapers, and realized that we can't always complain about our fate and stop living life just there. We need to accept the fact that we are lucky for having had the ability to achieve whatever we have till date, and also for the fact that we still hold a chance of making our dreams come true someday.
There are people in this world, for whom the definition of hardships is quite different from us. There are people for whom failure means death. There are people for whom survival is the ultimate success in life. There are people who don't have parents. There are people who don't have a job. There are people who don't have friends. There are people who don't have limbs. There are people who can't pay for their health. There are people who are terminal and wake up with a fact everyday, that they may not be alive for long.
I now realize that, I have no right to complain. I shouldn't complain. Life is much more beautiful than what I consider it to be. If you can smile, when you wish to, you still have a chance of making it work. Keep smiling and keep going!!! :)
A few days back, I was just going through the newspaper and I happened to read about the heat wave that has taken Kerala by surprise, the surprising fact being that peak summer is yet to arrive. The temperature has already reached 43 degrees and people are finding it difficult to cope up with it. The farmers are fighting hard to save their crops and cope up with such extreme temperature at the same time.
The same day I happened to visit my social networking profile and saw many photographs of beautiful places in Europe and US, posted by few of my friends who have been abroad from some time now. The world's a beautiful place. And it's been my long time ambition to visit all the beautiful places around the world. Unfortunately, it has never worked out up till now.
As the day progressed, and the work pressure piled up, I felt a sense of despair growing within me. I started thinking about all the plans which I had made for my career and which I haven't been able to realize till now. I thought about all the dreams which I had cherished since a long time, and which I haven't been able to fulfill till date. I started feeling like a looser, thinking about all the opportunities which I had wasted over the years. I thought about the kind of life my friends had been able to achieve just because they never lost the kind of opportunities, which I did. I hated myself that very moment, for everything I was at that very moment.
The worst thing about such a condition is that, there is no immediate thing which you can do, to get rid of it. The day continued and ended with me cursing myself for all the worst things I could think about me.
The next morning was a pleasant surprise. I woke up to my Mom letting me know that she was happy for being able to help out our house maid in a small manner. The previous day, she gave her a small table fan which was lying unused in our house for years. This morning, the maid came back for work and she let my mother know how happy her husband and 2 small kids have been for the addition of this table fan in their small house, which could barely accommodate such luxuries. They always had problems coping up with the summer, and had never been able to sleep comfortably in this season, for many years in a row. They had even tried hard to save up money to buy a table fan, but could never afford it, considering the modest income that she and her husband earn every month. She said that the last night was the best sleep she and her family had had in years.
I woke up to a reality. Here I was, a software developer in a reputed company, with no major health problems, living with my parents, having great friends, having ample time and ample opportunities for everything I wish to do, complaining and whining about not having a chance to go to Europe and US and rating my whole life "worthless" due to this one fact.
And here before me stood a lady who toiled hard everyday of her life, just to ensure that her family didn't have to sleep without food that day. A table fan which gathered dust in my home, was a luxury and a prized possession for her.
I thought about the farmers whom I had read about in the newspapers, and realized that we can't always complain about our fate and stop living life just there. We need to accept the fact that we are lucky for having had the ability to achieve whatever we have till date, and also for the fact that we still hold a chance of making our dreams come true someday.
There are people in this world, for whom the definition of hardships is quite different from us. There are people for whom failure means death. There are people for whom survival is the ultimate success in life. There are people who don't have parents. There are people who don't have a job. There are people who don't have friends. There are people who don't have limbs. There are people who can't pay for their health. There are people who are terminal and wake up with a fact everyday, that they may not be alive for long.
I now realize that, I have no right to complain. I shouldn't complain. Life is much more beautiful than what I consider it to be. If you can smile, when you wish to, you still have a chance of making it work. Keep smiling and keep going!!! :)
Comments
And now, I'll try I never do that. :)